This week we have the great opportunity to take a peek inside the studio of Cindy Kovack. Cindy will be teaching at this years Fireweed Art Retreat in Juneau. Thanks so much for letting us see inside your studio. We look forward to meeting you in October Cindy!
Describe your art.
I consider my art recycled assemblage, collage and mixed media. I use 50% or more of recycled materials in each art piece. This can be anything from beer caps to magazine pages, tuna cans to broken jewelry, old silverware boxes to empty perfume bottles. I also like what I call “usable” art. I enjoy art in my day to day life, around me, just not hanging on the walls, but to be able to wear and use in my day to day activities. I enjoy pieces in my work that are unusual, are usually free or being tossed out. I’ve believed all my life that we waste too many products, especially since plastic was introduced into our world.
Would you mind sharing a bit about your creative process and why a certain medium
appeals to you?
I come from a poor background; therefore there was no money
for art supplies. What made it
worse was that I was the only artistic person out of 8 children in the
family. My parents simply didn’t
understand my need to create.
Around the age of 7, needing art objects for my work, I would hike to
the dump, salvage items that I liked and use them to make toys for my sisters,
garden art and sculptures. My
father permitted me to use his house paint and model air plane brushes to paint
with. When I first worked with a
“normal” paint brush, in my teen years, I then developed my fine art
skills. My mother believed in
reinventing everyday items. Knowing what it was like to be very poor as a
child, she had me clean and crush cans, save butter bowls, and tie newspapers
to recycle well before it was popular. She was also very practical in knowing
exactly what to save and how to use it. I believe this background and her
practical eye, combined with my creative ability, formed my art as it is today. I also use the many painting techniques
I’ve learned over the years in my work. I have the ability to color match and
“fix” any work of art, from years of trial and error.
What does a typical day/hour/minute in your studio involve?
Normally, I spend at a minimum of 2 hours in my studio
once I begin to create. I like to
rise and shine early on the weekends, around dawn and go directly to my art. Many times I’ll have dreams of
something I would like to create.
I keep a notebook by my bed to jot down these ideas. Once in the studio I assemble parts and
pieces from separated, color coordinated bins on what I think the piece should
look like. I often work for 6-10
hours in my studio one day during the weekend. Having a day job, at times this is difficult, but it’s
something I no longer deny myself.
I believe this is one of the things that leads to my constant creativity
and ability to create at a whim, being able to view art in each day’s
activities and always want to head to my studio to create. I normally work on 3
or more pieces at one time. I’ve
found that if a part doesn’t work for one piece, I move it to another and start
a whole different work of art.
This is a technique I teach often in my classes.
How does your work benefit from having a designated studio space?
It’s essential to have a designated work space and not the kitchen table! I did this for far to years than I would like to admit. First, it creates a space that is yours and yours alone. Most women deny themselves an area for just their needs. The children have a play room, husbands have a garage or office space, where do the woman go to be creative and have a space for themselves? I can leave my art out at all times, walk into the room and get instant gratification from knowing everything is there, and ready to work with immediately. I also don’t have to take things out and put them away when I’m tired, I simply go to bed. It’s my sanctuary, my place of ideas and creativity that is all mine…and the cats. They too know this, as they sit happily on the corners of a water color paper I’m now working on. My studio was put together from recycled parts and pieces, and mostly has a retro 50’s feel, which I love. The old wood drafting table I use for my work was purchased at a garage sale many years ago. I have used school lockers from a thrift store, a dresser someone tossed into an alley and a china cabinet that holds my finished work perfectly that only cost me $99. at a resale shop. It’s not important that you buy new items to work with, especially if you are on a budget. I have a friend who furnished her studio with used French Provincial furnishings. She finished off all the pieces to match and it’s now a wonderful art retreat.
What keeps you coming back.
I use my art as a form of Yoga. It took me many years to realize that I do this. Being an
artist I thought everyone thought as I did. I found out as I aged this was not true. I tend to see things in an abstract
form. I don’t think when I create,
I simply let it flow from my body into the piece I’m working on. I don’t talk
and happily fall into a creative zone once in my studio. I get more peace of mind, and inner
knowledge of myself from being by myself in my special place. It’s far better than any therapy, who
wouldn’t want that in their lives?
Which artists or other art forms inspire you?
I’ve always loved the Masters and especially enjoy the
Impressionists, and Modern Art; Van Gogh, Picasso, O’Keeffe, also Kahlo, Sally
Mann, Chihuly, Frank Lloyd Wright, artists that have a story to tell, a reason
for their art combined with a true passion to create. Recently, I’ve started to study the Pre-Raphaelites and have
been using their ideas in my present work.
When your facing a creative block what have you done or where have you gone to get those, “A..ha” moments?
I am asked this question often, especially when people
view my work in person. I’ve only
had a problem with a creative block once in my life. After my late husband died in 2002 I was unable to create or
paint for nearly a year. The grief
cycle was so tremendous that I was unable to clear my mind of his death,
leaving me unable to draw from my creative soul. Once the grief started to lift, I found a huge relief in the
kind of art I created. It was more
meaningful, more from my inner self, more descriptive of whom I am, my personality
and what I believed in. I also
found myself back where I began as a child, with recycled assemblage and
collage.
I feed off of art, I simply love it. I often visit the Phoenix Art Museum,
and travel out of town for exhibits in other cities, go to art shows, exhibits,
and openings. I also draw
inspiration from teaching, especially young people. They are so very free and creative, as we all were at one
time and have forgotten.
Surrounding yourself with art, other creative souls, classes, museums
and anything involving art would also be a suggestion of mine. I enjoy the First Friday Art Walk in
downtown Phoenix, Arizona each month.
This is fresh, raw talent, art that many don’t like. I look at this as freedom of expression
and take something from every piece I view, new, exciting, passionate, a part
of the person creating the work.
What advice would you give an artist that dreams of making a living from their art?
There’s a reason they call us Starving Artists! I’ve always kept my day job, it pays
the bills. If you are truly
passionate about your work, there are ways to get your work out there. You will
find time to create, work around schedules and people will understand. I believe the biggest source for
artists is other artists. I have a
huge art connection in Phoenix.
When I get a request that I refuse to complete, not my style, etc., I
pass it onto my art group. Someone always e-mails me to thank me for the job. It would be nice to think that what we
all do, passionately and from the soul, will be loved by others. Unfortunately,
that’s not true. I’m told often
that I should go back to my prior art form, which bored me. The reason artists move on, change
their style is because they too must move within their own creative realm. Picasso was a well trained, Master
Artist who changed his style to the one we all know today and I thank him for
this. It is these forces that draw
us all in new directions. I’ve never been a commercial style artist and don’t
believe I ever will be. I love the
creative flow of making each piece original. I simply don’t want to make a piece, and sell thousands of
the same type pictures for the mass market. I’ve had people tell me constantly not to use a certain
material in my work, to make a copy and use the copy. If I don’t use what I have in my work, it won’t be creative
and original. That’s a part
of what keeps the creative juices flowing for me. That’s the fun of it, use what I have once, and pass it on
so that others will appreciate what I see each day.
Tell us the top 5 can’t live without supplies in your studio right now.
Golden Matte Gel Medium, Golden Acrylic paints, Arches
110# cold pressed water color paper, Master’s brush cleaner block, Ultimate Glue, my brushes, which I have
hundreds, sorry, went over 5, that’s a difficult question.
Tell us what items you don’t currently have in your studio that you would like.
Large, overheard Ott lighting system, ergonomic chair,
more counter space. Other than
that my studio is 200 sq. ft. and jammed to the rafters with stuff. I’m quite used to working in a full,
confined space. I prefer to simply
move a few feet to get what I need once creating.
Do you have favorite blog sites, web pages or groups online that you love?
I love MySpace and believe it’s a wonderful way to
network and get your art out into the world today. This system is free; it’s creative and very easy to
use. I’ve connected with artists from
all over the world. I always enjoy
reading other’s blogs and groups, but being as busy as I am these days, it’s
many times difficult to take the time to surf the web. I’d much rather put my time and energy
into my art.
List your blog, web page, MySpace pages or etsy stores for us to check out.
Thank you Cindy! We look forward to meeting you in October...
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